Insider Buys Of The Week: Energen, Seagate, International Flavors And More

• Insider buying can be an encouraging signal for potential investors.
• An activist investor was among those returning to the buy window last week.
• Again, some insider buying is follow earnings reports.

Conventional wisdom says insiders and 10 percent owners really only buy shares of a company for one reason -- they believe the stock price will rise and they want to profit from it. So insider buying can be an encouraging signal for potential investors, particularly with markets near all-time highs.

Here's a look at a few notable insider purchases reported in the past week.

Seagate Technology

Seagate Technology PLC STX saw ValueAct Holdings step up to the buy window this past week. The total of more than 945,000 shares of this data storage company acquired, at per-share prices ranging from $52.63 to $52.94, cost the advisor more than $49.92 million. The total stake was listed as about 23.35 million shares, out of more than 296 million outstanding.

These purchases came just after Seagate posted better-than-expected quarterly results and announced the resignation of its chief financial officer. The stock ended the week trading at $53.88, so the timing of these purchases seems fortunate. The stock has changed hands between $ 30.60 and $62.70 in the past year, and the analyst's mean price target is $58.62.

International Flavors & Fragrances

International Flavors & Fragrances Inc IFF had beneficial owner Winder Investment add to its stake again. At prices that ranged from $131.53 to $133.14, the 250,000 shares reportedly acquired in the past week cost the Singapore-based holding company more than $33.06 million. Note that Winder has been buying shares on and off since March.

IFF recently boosted its quarterly dividend. The stock ended the week at $134.20, above Winder's purchase price range. The 52-week low of $122.11 from back in May compares with the 52-week high of $157.40 that was reached early this year. The consensus price target, last seen at $142.39, is less than that high.

See also: Dow Chemical CEO Says Company Is Tackling Plastic Waste

Energen

Energen Corporation EGN saw renowned activist investor Carl Icahn increase his stake again on Aug. 1. The more than 361,000 shares of this Alabama-based energy company acquired, at per-share prices between $73.86 and $74.21, cost him over $26.75 million. That brought his stake to nearly 6.06 million shares, and he has been buying shares since June.

Icahn previously stated an interest in acquiring Energen, which he claims is undervalued. Shares retreated slightly in the past week and were trading at $74.28 a share. That was still close to the top of Icahn's purchase price range. Shares have traded as high as $78.30 in the past year, and the analyst's mean price target is $79.20.

Mohawk Industries

At Mohawk Industries, Inc. MHK, a director added another 25,000 shares of this flooring products company to a stake on Aug. 3. The share price for this purchase was $183.44, and the transaction totaled more than $4.58 million. Note that this same director also bought more than 50,000 shares last month.

Credit Suisse and Jefferies each lowered its price target on Mohawk in the wake of its quarterly report. The weak earnings and outlook sent shares tumbling back in July, and they closed Friday at $186.61. The analysts' mean price target is $231.71 a share.

First Horizon National

The CEO of First Horizon National Corp FHN, Bryan Jordan, and a director picked up a total of 125,000 shares this past week. At between $17.72 and $18.20 apiece, that totaled more than $2.26 million. Note that another director purchased 5,000 shares in the previous week.

Mixed quarterly numbers resulted in some analyst downgrades back in July. The shares ended the past week trading at $18.23, up more than 3 percent for the week but just above the purchase price range. The S&P 500 saw a gain of about 1 percent last week. The stock's consensus price target was last seen at $20.39.